Our Ultimate Life

Sunday, October 14, 2012

Straw Maze

What a great week we had here in Rexburg! The weather was fantastic. No wind and not too cold with beautiful fall trees everywhere! The leaves are on the ground here and there, but for the most part they're still on the trees looking very festive.

For FHE we went to Idaho Falls to run errands. We had our coordinator's meeting before which always puts us both in a bad mood, so it felt good to get away. As some of you know, coordinating has been hard on Justin and me because they are changing things up in ways that make it feel like we're running a concentration camp, and we're not even allowed to play. Of course, I've been trying to ignore a lot of it. But there are threats of teams being ineligible to play in championships, so I'm being forced to comply. Dumb.

Tuesday we had our rec frisbee game. We played a team that actually scored a little bit against us so that was fun to have a challenge. I was still pretty sick, and I had to play the whole game because we didn't have any subs, so by the end I was almost certain I would have a setback. I went to bed immediately and was fine the next day.

Wednesday morning I took my physics test and got an A so that was a blessing. My teacher, Brother McNiel, is one of the coolest teachers ever! During my time here I've had a few teachers who have had a tremendous positive influence on me, and he is one of them. I want to be a science teacher just like him. You know those people you meet who are just so witty? That is Brother McNiel! Full of wit and humor....his class is my favorite thing. I have another teacher, Brother Lewis, who has Chase in another class so he teases me about him sometimes. He always calls me "Sister Rose!" with such enthusiasm, it cracks me up. He'll say stuff like, "Sister Rose! Your brother has an answer for everything!" He's a cool guy, and his class is easy. Win win. Justin and I had a meeting with our frisbee coaches Wednesday night and then went to the temple. We usually go on Wednesday or Thursday every week which has been wonderful! When I was single I could only do baptisms for the dead, and they only allow walk-ins to do work from 6AM to 3PM, often turning people away at 12 because there's generally a 3-hour wait. It has been so nice being able to go at night.

Friday night we had frisbee games. I made a "congratulations" sign for one of my coaches who got engaged. She said she might buy my dress so that would be sweet. I got really nervous because one of the supervisors of competitive sports showed up at the games and I thought for sure he'd see me breaking his policies and fire me...but he didn't (phew). The games were very exciting. I had a hard time keeping my mouth shut...no girls lay out EVER, so sitting on the sideline watching girls barely miss catches because they couldn't bend over far enough drives me crazy....lay out for goodness sake! Anyway...Justin and I watched the new Project Runway after the games. Next week the finale premiers while I'll be on a geology field trip....seriously? I'm so anxious to see who wins. I like everyone who's left so it's hard for me to pick a favorite...right now I think it's a toss up between Demitri and Christopher for the win...we shall see.

Saturday I woke up early and studied at the library for three hours before taking my geology test. I was in the testing center for two and a half hours taking that test. Half was write on while the other half was multiple choice. I think I spent an hour alone on the final essay question. Strangely enough, I kind of liked taking that test. He asked us to draw diagrams to explain certain concepts and I had fun showing off my knowledge. I hope I get another A! Justin and I went to the Archer straw maze for a date that night and had so much fun! The owners have a wallabee they bought off the internet and a camel they raised from birth....random! We took a ride on their wagon around a field and of course spent time getting lost in the maze. The maze turns haunted after dark, so I made sure we had time to enjoy our stay before dark. We ate at Sammy's and had famous pie shakes and burgers....so good!

Baby wallabee! He liked me, but not Justin. His name is Rudy

this sunset looks like the earth's interior to me...core, mantle, crust.

straw tunnel

I bet they hide scary people behind here when it's haunted

That night Justin had a bunch of guy friends over to do man cave stuff, so I hung out with his friend Jeremy's wife, Katrina. We painted nails and watched 27 Dresses, and then when Jeremy got home I OWNED them at this Asian game called Gang of Four.

In other news, Justin is talking to his boss about working full time for BYU-Idaho when he graduates. They want to keep him around, but they may have to pull a few strings to keep him after he graduates. Like I said before, I have a geology field trip this week in the middle of nowhere Utah. We'll be collecting Trilobites...which are Arthropods, in case you were wondering. I'll leave Thursday at like 6AM and get back Saturday around midnight. I'm bummed I'll miss stake conference Saturday night, and the new Project Runway. Oh well, I'm over it. That's it for this week! Get excited for some geology pictures next week. =]

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Quarantined

Nothing really happened that was exciting for us this week. I got sick to the extreme! That was very disappointing because we were looking forward to harvesting potatoes with Trisha for FHE that week and I ended up being in a Niquil-coma. Tuesday and Wednesday morning I was coughing up blood. Because I'm crazy, I still HAD to go to class. It didn't help that Rexburg decided to turn its thermostat way down this week as well. Tuesday we were still enjoying fall weather, and from Wednesday until probably June 2013 the weather has gone sour. Biking to school has been quite the trial...especially when your bike gets a flat tire on the way home. Blarg! But, I'm happy to report that now I'm doing much better.

Justin was able to take care of me all week which was a lifesaver...it looks like I'll be taking care of him this week because he's coming down with a sore throat which could turn into who-knows-what. For FHE we plan on going to Winco which is fun for us, especially Justin. I think Winco is his next favorite store after Home Depot.

In two weeks Justin's brother gets home from his mission in Portugal. We'll probably fly up to see him and also celebrate his brother Jon's birthday. We've been doing fantasy football with his family and I've gone from consistently losing to consistently winning....I'm the dark horse, I know it! There's a $60 prize for the winner. We are hard core.

I have my first geology and physics tests this week and they are scheduled on the exact same days...great! Coordinating ultimate has been better since I've decided to completely ignore all of BYU-Idaho's Competitive Sports rules. It has been liberating and exhilarating ..I can't wait to see what they do to me when/if I get caught.

General Conference was a delight! All my single female friends are basically signing their mission papers as we speak. Rexburg can stop building more women's housing because half the campus is going to serve I swear. The church is going to explode! Exciting times.

Justin and I went home to Arco for conference and got to spend time with Gabe and Christy's kids while Christy recovered from surgery. Brigette and I carved a pumpkin (in other words, I carved the pumpkin while Brigette coached me to "make it scary" =]) and Justin played a lot of hide and seek. Fun kids at fun ages!

That's about it for us. Until next time!

Sunday, September 30, 2012

It was the End of September

This week has been a fun one for Justin and me. Monday for FHE we were both really stressed after our hour long coordinator meeting, so we just made homemade pizza out of random things in our refrigerator It was a great way to unwind and the pizza was delicious!

Tuesday Hammer Time, our rec frisbee team, played our first game. We dominated them 15-0. Our goal is to have a perfect record in wins and points; no team scores against us! We'll see what happens. Because Justin and I are coordinating the competitive league, we're not allowed to play in the competitive league. Rec and club are the only times we get to play frisbee which is a shame because there's no competition in rec, and the club games are in far away places that require gas to get there...which we don't want to pay for.

We also attempted to pick apples from the school orchard that night, but when we walked up there all the apples were gone. Lame! Oh well, we plan on going with Trisha to a potato harvest thing tomorrow for FHE where we can get a bunch for free. Score!

Wednesday we had a ward activity. We had a bunch of sandwiches, and I made Oreo truffles to take for a dessert. We're making friends slowly, but there's not really anybody Justin and I are really clicking with. The good news is a lot of our frisbee friends are married so we hang out with them a lot. Every Sunday we do game night with the Soules, Breinholts, and a few other couples.

Thursday I had an astronomy activity out at the livestock center where they have a 12" diameter telescope. We looked at the moon and it was actually too bright to look very long (it was a waxing gibbous, so not quite a full moon). We saw some star clusters too. Don't let Hubble's pictures fool you; it definitely does not look that amazing when you're looking through a telescope. The massive ones the university owns don't even do much. I was also super frustrated at competitive sports that day for all the silly procedures they're making players go through this semester, so I took my frustration out on our apartment and cleaned like a crazy woman! It felt great and our place looks great too.

Friday Justin and I were busy with frisbee games. The women's league has five teams this semester, so plenty of competition to go around. The guys have six so they're having fun as well. A few coaches have asked me to come to their practices to show them a few things, so I'm looking forward to that. I really enjoy the opportunity to meet all the girls and build a relationship with them, but everything else is really frustrating and makes me want to quit! The only reason I won't quit is because if I do, the league is done...so I'll do my part for another 6 weeks. We went out to Costa Vida in reward for all our hard work and finished the night watching The Lorax.

Saturday we went to the temple in the morning and had the opportunity to be the witness couple! That was extra special for us. We had club frisbee practice at Porter Park after that. Our team wants to go down to Utah this weekend to play BYU's team in between conference, but it's not worth the money to me to play just one game, so Justin and I plan on going home and enjoying Mom's corn chowder, thank you very much. We made homemade pizza for lunch again, but with whole wheat crust this time (I am my mother's daughter), and that night I enjoyed the Relief Society General Broadcast with Trisha. Her stake does dinner before and then watches it at the stake center so I joined her for that. They had quilts showing at the dinner that the ladies in the stake had made and Trisha let two of her quilts shine: the one she made for Justin and me for a wedding gift and one she made out of Travis's sport uniforms, t-shirts, and other sport memorabilia.

While we were off being super spiritual, Justin got a bunch of his guy friends together and had "man cave time" at our apartment. He said there was a great turnout. They had pizza and Oreo truffles (you're welcome) and played Starcraft and Halo. I did a bunch of homework that night at Justin's office after the broadcast since our apartment was full of testosterone and the library was closed. Gotta keep that GPA up!

Today I was called as a ward organist. I about died when he said "ward organist." I was hoping for more of a "Relief Society teacher" calling or something like that. Oh well, ANYTHING is better that nursery in my opinion at this stage in my life. I'm not good with children. I'm sure I'll be fine with my own, just not anybody else's. I've never even been that lovey-dovey with my nieces and nephews so...yeah. Let the El. Em. majors take care of that business. Justin is the Priesthood substitute teacher in the Elder's quorum, so we both have callings now. We had a great Sunday dinner with a bunch of Justin's friends. I broke out the peach pie filling we made with Trisha about a month ago which was delicious! Peach pie is my ultimate favorite! That about sums up our week.

Here's our wedding video, in case you missed it: http://vimeo.com/49855091#at=0

The Wedding&Honeymoon

Justin and I have now been married for 23 days and it has been 23 days of bliss! We love our apartment, I love all my classes and my teachers, Justin is rocking his internship, plus work, plus three classes, and we are both coordinating ultimate! It is busy but we are so so happy.

I think we were very smart about our wedding pictures. The day of the wedding it was horribly bright right when we came out, so we hardly got any good shots from the day of. But, we happened to take pictures the Thursday before with a frisbee friend and those ones turned out great!

I loved loved loved my dress! It was originally sleeveless, so I had it altered to put the sleeves on and you can't even tell! Trisha and Lauren (college friend) helped me pick out my dress and we all agreed the one I got was the best choice.

Mitzi put on the reception of the century for me. Justin and I were so happy about it! Christy was a magician with those refreshments. MMM! Justin and I were also very happy with our wedding video put on by our videographer that followed us around all day. Thanks Joseph!

After the reception we drove to Sun Valley to spend a couple nights there. The hotel people left us some chocolates and sparkling cider in our room addressed to "Mr. & Mrs. Rose."

Our room was awesome! It had a fire place and a balcony--hello! It was sweet. We went to sacrament meeting on Sunday and it was packed! They had to fill the gym, the stage behind it, and some side classrooms full of chairs to accommodate everyone. After church we walked around forever because the weather was so nice and there was a lot to see. There was a car show going on, outdoor ice skating, and the shops were also fun to look at. It wasn't keeping the Sabbath day holy I suppose, but oh well. We ate at "The Ram" that night which was delicious!

Monday we drove all day. Because my car is super sketch we didn't run AC at all. We drove all the way to Seaside, arriving around 10:30. I drove during most of the afternoon and ended up with a wicked sunburn on my left arm! I also saw two big-horned sheep by the Columbia River. We stopped in Portland at "Voo Doo Doughnuts" and then took the most treacherous drive of my life! I literally thought, "It's a good thing we're sealed now," because I thought we were dead. The highway we drove on was pitch dark (no moon due to fog) and there was tons of traffic coming the other way which was blinding us because everyone and their dog had their brights on. One car passed another as they were coming toward us, and if Justin hadn't pulled over, he would've hit us head on. I was crying the whole time. I have never felt so stressed in my life.

Tuesday was our first day in Seaside and we enjoyed walking around the shops and playing at the beach. We also played at Cannon Beach where the famous sea stack is (geology major--I loved it!) and ate Mo's famous clam chowder. The weather was awesome that day. We soaked up the weather and each other. It was so relaxing not to have to do anything we didn't want to do!

Wednesday we drove to Astoria where this famous column is that tells the story of Lewis and Clark. We also went to Fort Stevens and saw all the WWI and WWII war/army stuff. That night we ate dinner at a four-star restaurant and we about died the food was so amazingly great! We had smoked duck salad, pear and fennel soup, I had Mong Chong (fish shipped overnight from ASIA) and Justin had Filet Mignon. For dessert they served us flour-less chocolate cake with berry and "congratulations!" written on the plate! That was a 2 1/2 hour-ish affair which we loved so much! We both agree it was our favorite part of our honeymoon.

Thursday we drove to Puyallup which was a good 5 hours away. We stopped in Tacoma to shop there for fun. We got some stuff we wanted for school, and then chilled at Jon's house for the night.

Friday my sister in-law Laura took me to get my toenails done, and then we met Mom and Dad and Justin's parents for lunch. We set up for the Kent reception all afternoon, and then our guests started showing up around 6. We had lasagna for them to eat, and Justin's mom went all out making six different flavors of cupcakes! Everyone has been so generous in their support of our wedding. We had a great turnout, and I was very grateful Mom and Dad made the effort to come.

Saturday we drove all day back to Rexburg. We opened our presents before and were on the road by 10. We went through Montana which was fun for me because the geology there was sweet! I bet I'll go to some of those places for my geology class field trips. We rolled into Rexburg shortly before midnight. Luckily our ward starts at 1:30 so we had a good night's rest to recover.

Here are a million pictures --> enjoy